Mother's Day 2019: Mothers celebrated on second Sunday of May every year, here is history behind event

This year, Mother's Day is being celebrated on Sunday, 12 May. It is observed on the second Sunday of May every year, in honour of motherhood and to pay tribute to mothers all around the world.

In India, it is marked by motherhood-centric discounts and offers from retailers and brands have become increasingly conscious about Mother's Day. The United Kingdom, meanwhile, celebrates it on the fourth Sunday of March, in memory of Mother Church on Christian Mothering Sunday, reports said.

Representational image. Getty images

In Greece, the day is observed in honour of Jesus Christ being presented to the temple according to the Eastern Orthodox traditions. Arab countries observe Mother's Day on 21 March, which is the spring equinox. However, in ex-Communist countries, people celebrated only International Women's Day instead of Mother's Day.

History of Mother's Day

Writer Julia Ward Howe is credited with first thinking of the idea of Mother's Day in 1872. "Howe was a pacifist and saw the holiday as a chance to unite women and rally for peace. For several years, she held an annual Mother's Day meeting in Boston," CNN reported.

However, an activist in West Virgina, Anna Jarvis came up with the model of Mother's Day that is celebrated today. In 1908, she campaigned for a national holiday in honour of her mother, who was a community health advocate. Her mother had made several efforts that addressed child rearing and public health issues at a community level, which is what Jarvis wanted to commemorate through the Mother's Day celebration.

Even though the request was denied initially, by 1911, the whole United States started observing the holiday. "Woodrow Wilson signed a proclamation designating the second Sunday in the month of May as a national holiday to honour mothers in 1941," The Indian Express reported.

Reportedly, Jarvis became "disillusioned" by the commercialisation of the occasion, and "regretted starting it", reports said.

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